Capitals trade Vitek Vanecek to Devils originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington
The Capitals opened the second and final day of the NHL draft by trading goalie Vitek Vanecek to the New Jersey Devils for two draft picks.
Washington sent Vanecek and the 46th selection to New Jersey for the 37th and 70th selections in the draft.
Vanecek played two seasons with the Capitals and registered back-to-back seasons with .908 save percentages. He was the expansion selection of the Seattle Kraken a year ago, but after just a week as a member of the organization, he was traded back to Washington.
He played well enough during the regular season to start Game 1 of the postseason against the Panthers. He earned a win, but was pulled after two periods in Game 2. Ilya Samsonov entered in relief and played well enough for the Capitals to go with him until the end of the series.
The Capitals’ moves in net are not yet finished, as general manager Brian MacLellan hasn’t been shy about his desire to add a veteran goalie to the mix. The team still has Samsonov’s rights, as he’s a restricted free agent, but will likely add someone with NHL experience within the next week.
